


28. Beaten

by titC



Series: Whumptober 2019 [28]
Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gen, whumptober2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2020-11-08 04:01:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20829074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/titC/pseuds/titC
Summary: A power couple. Sort of.





	28. Beaten

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to [Whumptober](https://whumptober2019.tumblr.com/) for organizing it and [PixelByPixel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/) for the beta!  


“I beat you!”

Wilson thinks about these words every day, every hour, every moment. The lawyer who dishes out violence, the vigilante who will never have the courage to do what it takes to get results. He’s scared of death.

Matt Murdock is weak, his masked alter ego is weak, and yet he beat him. He beat Wilson Fisk, whose own blood marred the beautiful white painting and Vanessa’s beautiful white gown. Murdock used to wear red, as an attorney and as Daredevil. Bold color for a blind man – if he really is blind – and for a long time, Wilson despised him for it.

Wilson wore black, only black, for many years. Something that didn’t distract from his goal, that gave him the gravitas his upbringing hadn’t taught him. When asked, he sometimes said he still mourned his father’s passing. Wesley had approved of the color and black did make his life easier, too. No time wasted in thinking about what to wear, how to match: it was all easy.

In hindsight, he can see how Vanessa made everything crumble down: the empire he’d built that his father could never even have dreamed of. And he has no regrets, no. Every minute with her is worth every single thing that happened. She changed his goals; she changed his wardrobe too. She made him feel like he had the entire world at his fingertips, like he could control everything right as it was all escaping him.

And now…

He loves white, now. He loves the color that isn’t one and that hides nothing. He has nothing to hide. He will rebuild, he always does; and this time she’ll be right by his side, his equal and his queen at the same time. And, yes, his wife. He’s still not over it.

He’s managed to keep his ring with him, even in jail; and between the whitewashed cell wall and the metal on his skin he’s always thinking of her, too.

They got married; he was at the top of the world, he had money and power again and he had her and – Daredevil destroyed everything again, him and that stupid little law firm that shouldn't even exist, that had even ceased to exist for a while. Murdock had humiliated Wilson, had beaten him again, and all in front of her.

He’ll make that skinny lawyer pay, one way or another.

Vanessa comes to visit sometimes. She’s managed to get herself an _innocent_ verdict; a woman blinded to her husband’s activities by love. The press loved it, and no one could prove anything conclusively. She’s managed to stay in the country by claiming she needs to be near her husband; she played the poor, distraught wife in front of the cameras after the trials; she was a success. She’s smart and beautiful, and they all lapped it up.

So he gets to see her, from time to time.

She always looks perfect; her smile is sly and she really knows all of him. Wilson finds that so very comforting. He begged her to step away from his business, but she stood firm and now he’s stopped asking her to leave it well alone. She won’t, and she has in fact started to rebuild the Fisk brand.

He’s noticed his name is a source of respect and fear again in prison; except it’s not directed at him, but at her. Nothing can be linked to her, but everybody knows. And her cold efficiency is a thing of beauty, truly. Wilson isn't quite sure how she got to be so good at it, but she really is, and he is even more in awe of her than he was before.

Vanessa is coming today. Prison garb will never be flattering, but Wilson tries hard to look his best; he shaves his skull as close as he can without a single nick and he brushes his teeth extra carefully. He’s ready.

“Hello, Wilson,” she says.

“Vanessa.” He’s always been a little tongue-tied around her, especially when they haven’t seen each other for a while. “Vanessa, I’ve missed you.”

“Yes.”

She’s a bit distant, and Wilson suspects the guards are listening and she doesn't want to give them a show. He looks at the door, then back at her. They may have spousal privileges, but it’s still a maximum security jail.

“Don’t worry, all the guards belong to me by now.” Her teeth are very white. “I’ve bought them all. Profit’s on the rise, and now I can afford it. If there is anything you’d like, it’s yours.”

He smiles. “What about leaving this place to be with you?”

“That’s still too soon; I need to build clout. I can easily buy the lower ranks, but the people I need to convince for that… it would be too obvious.”

“Yes, of course.” He’s disappointed, but he knows she’s right.

“Ah, Wilson.” She takes his hand and he feels himself blushing. “I’ve always been attracted to power, and your particular combination of power and humanity was just perfect.” _Was_? Why _was_? “But now I’ve found that I enjoy wielding it even more than I enjoyed men of power. Wealth, influence, it’s wonderful to have them in my own hands. And now I have gotten a taste, I’m not letting anyone take it from me.”

“We’ll share when I’m free again, Vanessa. You and I, together. I cannot wait.”

“I will not share.” Wilson can feel his mouth go slack. “This is what I’ve come to tell you: either you accept these new terms in our marriage, and I’ll be happy to provide you with anything you want; or you don’t, and our marriage is over. I prefer the first option, but I do not want to deprive you of your freedom of choice. I know full well how unpleasant that is.”

Like he did to her, he remembers. God, she is perfect and terrible; she owns him body and soul. She’s beaten him, yes, but she owns him and he’s loving every second of it. He’s crushed under her heels and he will be her plaything if that’s what she wants. Anything she wants.

“Yes,” he replies. “Yes.”

For now, he can ignore the bitter taste in his mouth. It is nothing. He is happy to be beaten by her.

For now.


End file.
